His Girl
by J. Metropolis
Summary: Eugene is left to his own devices as he deals with a jittery princess on their wedding night. *One-shot*


**His Girl  
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>Parental expectations, social mores, extremely vigilant guards with pointy swords and even the laws on the books had all conspired to keep <em>his <em>princess intact until her wedding day. Eugene could tell they were going about this the wrong way. He felt the far better approach would have been to allow him to gradually ease Rapunzel into this new experience in the months preceding their nuptials. But no one had bothered to ask his opinion on such matters and Eugene never quite got around to broaching the subject with the King and Queen. He had already narrowly escaped the gallows and did not think he would be so lucky a second time. So naturally, he never got past first base with his girl and he was left to deal with the expected aftermath - a princess who was a bundle of nerves and perhaps a wee bit apprehensive – on their wedding night.

Rapunzel had always responded eagerly to his kisses, sometimes a little too eagerly. When she got carried away, she would forcefully lace her delicate fingers into the collar of his shirt or in his hair and start humming delectable little noises into his mouth. He loved that about her. Her unbridled enthusiasm, her _joie de vivre_, in spite of all that had happened to her. It kept him up at night, thinking about this remarkable girl who, while making up for lost time was also driving him crazy.

He only really minded when she would get carried away at inopportune times, like in front of her parents or in the village square. At such times, it was Eugene's job to squelch the fire before it got out of hand and consumed them both. It was his job to bring her back down from celestial planes.

The cosmic justice of his circumstances did not escape Eugene's attention. In his past life, he had been quite popular with the ladies and so he suspects the universe is punishing him, slowly torturing him for all his past dalliances and indulgences by giving him a princess who was perpetually out of reach and saddling him with the arduous task of defending against her tantalizing advances.

So when the restriction that had been the bane of his palace existence had finally been lifted, Eugene couldn't help but feel a little disappointed by Rapunzel's lackluster response to his open mouth kisses.

He had secretly hoped that she would take to this activity with the same wide-eyed exuberance she had applied to her many new discoveries upon leaving her tower. But, Eugene is not dense. He knows that expecting Rapunzel to react to this new experience the same way she had reacted when she first tasted crème brulee was unrealistic. It was only natural that she would be experiencing some trepidation.

"Are you okay?" He asks with concern when he finally gives up on trying to coax her with kisses that fall unrequited on her lips. He furrows his thick eyebrows and looks intently into her face, into the deep green eyes he so often lost himself in.

"Just a little nervous, I guess," she offers with a weak smile before quickly tilting her head to the side and breaking eye contact. It was not like Rapunzel to be shy around him.

Eugene knows that the Queen had talked to Rapunzel shortly after their engagement had been announced. The Queen had given Rapunzel a run down of what was to be expected of her on their wedding night so Rapunzel would not be entirely clueless. This tidbit of information had been personally revealed to Eugene by the Queen herself, just a few hours before the ceremony, in what was surely the most awkward conversation of Eugene's life. Couldn't she have slipped me a note? he thought to himself, after the Queen had left his bedroom. Still, he was grateful for the information.

Eugene knows that hitting all the bases before sliding into home would probably be too overwhelming for his princess so he mentally decides to shelve certain more advanced aspects of third base and stick with the conventional posture at least for tonight.

With this in mind, he starts kissing her again. Since she won't return the kisses he has lovingly placed on her lips, he decides he'll kiss her neck and her shoulders and that sensitive little spot behind her ear which always makes her whimper.

He knows it's completely normal for Rapunzel to be feeling a little anxious about this particularly new activity. Still, he's taken aback by the degree of her resistance. He's not making any progress. In fact, not only has he made no new inroads, things appear to be deteriorating rapidly. She is now shaking like a leaf.

He stops kissing her neck and pulls back to look at her face. Her eyes are shut tight, her button nose is scrunched up, her teeth are clenched in anticipation. She is bracing herself for the impending intrusion as if he would barge in at any moment without telling her. It finally dawns on Eugene that Rapunzel is terrified.

For a moment, he doesn't recognize her. For a moment, his heart stops because he thinks he's lost her. She's not the same frying-pan-wielding, fearless Rapunzel who is ready to take on the world. She's the lonely girl from the tower, who is afraid of ruffians and thugs and who is afraid of _him_.

Eugene's stomach drops, he abruptly sits up so he's no longer lying on top of her possessively and scoops her up in his arms, sitting her on his lap and holding her close to his chest. "Hey," he pauses to catch his breath before proceeding, "we don't have to do anything you don't want to do." he whispers. He tries to keep the disappointment out of his voice, but he's not sure if he has succeeded.

She slowly opens her eyes and looks up at him a bit incredulously before quickly turning her face into his chest. It stings him a little.

He gently places a hand underneath her chin and proceeds to delicately bring her back into his line of sight.

"Rapunzel, I love you." He pauses. "Please tell me what's wrong." He pleads.

He is still holding her chin up but she manages to avert her eyes. "I'm scared that it's going to hurt," she finally whispers back.

Eugene sighs in relief. "_Oh_, is that all." He says. Rapunzel, darts her eyes back at him, perplexed by his reaction. "Well" he proceeds slowly, making sure to maintain eye contact with her, "yes, it probably will hurt a bit at first but then you'll _adjust_ and then it won't hurt any more, then it will feel fantastic." He pauses, letting his words sink in. "And. You'll be in control," he adds, "the entire time. If you tell me to stop, I'll stop." He knows he should say something flippant to lighten the mood but he's not really feeling it. He's a little bewildered because he's never had trust issues with his girl.

He moves the hand that is underneath her chin across her jaw to caress her shorn locks as he places a gentle kiss on her forehead. This small gesture earns him a little smile and he smiles back at her. She then proceeds to kiss him on the lips. Uncertain at first, but soon she regains her confidence and kisses him with the same wild abandon she's exhibited countless times in the village square or in the secluded hallways of the castle. But this time, he doesn't stop her, this time she's all his.

When it is over, he feels immense gratitude. He knows that it is nothing short of a miracle that he ended up with her. Despite all his transgressions and past offenses, the universe saw fit to give him a second chance. A second chance at life with this remarkable girl lying on his chest. The skin-on-skin contact feels amazing and he feels overwhelmed with love.

She looks up at him with her gorgeous emerald green eyes and her brilliant smile and Eugene feels the corners of his mouth twitching upwards into a ridiculous grin. He cannot help himself. He is _so_ proud of her. After her initial hesitation, she had been so brave, she had been so trusting, she had fallen apart so beautifully, all for him.

Biting her lower lip she looks up at him with a mixture of unabashed curiosity and excitement. "Again?" she asks. Eugene is all too happy to oblige. As he flips them over, Eugene thinks, there's my girl.


End file.
